In 1988, a man named Harvey
Mackay wrote a book that set the business world on fire. It was called “Swim
With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive.” It is an entertaining and
enlightening handbook to be successful in your career and personal life. It is a
networking bible. It established Harvey Mackay as a respected author and
columnist.
The book chronicles Mackay’s
career from a recent college graduate trying to find a job, becoming successful
selling envelopes, to buying a failing envelope company and turning it into a
huge success. The book has been re-printed and needs to be in every businessman’s
arsenal.
As a construction
Subcontractor, we are losing the personal relationships we have with our
customers, the General Contractors. Invitations to bid are sent out
electronically. To view plans, we go onto a contractor’s FTP site or to a
service like iSqFt. We download and print plans or order
the prints from a third party printing service. We send our bids by fax or
email. General Contractors now have a “pre-construction” department that puts
the bids together before handing them off to the project manager, sometimes
with a purchasing department in between. Unless you have a relationship with a
contractor, or a really low price, your lines of communication with the
contractor are limited.
Getting to know the people in
the company you want to do business with are more important than having the lowest
price. Contractors are looking for the lowest responsible bid, and when the
contractor knows you, you get a seat at the table when the job is bought out.
What Harvey Mackay wrote in 1988 is relevant today, except that part about a
Roladex. If you use Mackay’s principles, including the “Mackay 66,” the things
you should know about your client, your business relationships will be greatly
improved. For you youngsters, it is even available as an e-book.
No comments:
Post a Comment